Jaromir Jagr seems to pass another NHL great every time he scores a goal.

By scoring the 693rd of his career Wednesday night the Devils’ 41-year-old right winger passed Steve Yzerman for sole possession of eighth place on the all-time list and now stands one goal behind Mark Messier.

Because it wound up being the winning goal in the Devils’ 5-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators at Prudential Center, Jagr broke Gordie Howe’s all-time record with his 122nd career game-winner.

Reid Boucher, just 20, can only dream of such records. But the Devils’ rookie left winger offered a hint of the future when he scored his first NHL goal.

“I was glad for Boucher. He could’ve had three or four by now. So hopefully that opens the door for him to bang a few more in,” coach Pete DeBoer said.

“We were talking today about who he reminds me of. He reminds me a little bit of a Mark Recchi type player. Not to put too much pressure on him. He has some of those abilities, which is great.”

Boucher’s goal, which gave the Devils a 2-0 lead at 12:08 of the first period, could have been the winner had the Senators not scored on the power play midway through the third.

Fellow rookie Eric Gelinas took a pass from Michael Ryder and blasted a shot off the end boards. Boucher played the carom and scored from the right side of the crease just below the goal line.

“Geli was the trailer and he absolutely ripped the puck. It just went wide and it came right on my stick for a tap-in. I almost sailed it high. I was just a little excited,” Boucher said.

“It means a lot. It’s something I’m going to remember for the rest of my life. It was a very special moment.”

The crowd chanted: "Bou-cher...Bou-cher."

“It ended up a nice pass, I guess,” said Gelinas, who had a goal and an assist. “I was surprised that it landed flat for him. Normally when I hit the boards it always trickles.”

Brodeur said of the goal: “It’s a sharp angle shot that he made. It’s not everybody that can play it off a bouncy boards and roof it like that. The kid has hands.”

Jagr still has the hands which will put him in the Hall of Fame. He hadn’t scored a power play goal all season before he drew a holding penalty from Bobby Ryan 19 seconds into the second period and then scored with the man advantage.

After taking a pass from Travis Zajac, Jagr’s backhander from the bottom of the right circle went inside the far left post at 2:08. The goal was his 12th of the season but first in nine games.

“It’s a long streak for me without a goal. Zubie (linemate Dainius Zubrus) did a great job to shut me down for eight games,” Jagr joked. “Finally I jumped on the ice when he wasn’t there so I could break the streak. Hopefully I can keep scoring.”

Goalie Martin Brodeur, who stopped 23 shots to help the Devils pull even with the Rangers and Flyers with 34 points, said he did Jagr a favor by giving up Milan Michalek’s goal.

“I told (Jagr) I let the guy score on me just so it sets up the record for him,” Brodeur joked.

A power play tip-in from Colin Greening at 5:30 of the second ended Brodeur’s shutout streak at 87:01.

The Devils got a slick goal from Damien Brunner with 27.2 seconds remaining in the second period for a 4-1 lead and Michalek scored his goal for Ottawa in the third. It was meaningless, except for the fact that it made Jagr’s goal the record-breaking game-winner.

“It’s an unbelievable feat, especially with the names on the list he’s around and passing,” DeBoer said. “It’s an unbelievable accomplishment.”

Something Boucher can only dream about.

“He’s an unbelievable player,” Boucher said of Jagr. “It doesn’t surprise me that he’s breaking records. He’s been one of the best guys in the league for so long. Congrats to him.”